A few years ago, one of the Muse on Monday story prompts was to write a story that was nothing but dialogue. Today’s is similar but it is combative dialogue: an argument, a fight of words, an attempted persuasion, perhaps.

With this kind of dialogue, the conflict is obvious. It is like a fencing match where one person attacks and the other person defends, then counterattacks, all with words. Or it is like a siege where one tries to break down the other’s objections and get them to agree to something.

One difference between combative dialogue in fiction and in real life is that in real life, there is often no resolution (think of two people arguing over politics). However, in fiction there should be some resolution, for better or worse. It doesn’t mean that the people agree or that the one person is convinced, but there should still be a story arc, where the issue is introduced, tension rises to a climax, then there is some sort of resolution.

Story Prompt: September 2, 2024

Write a story using combative dialogue.

I would love to hear from you if you write a story for this prompt. You can send me a link to your story if you’ve posted it on your own site or send it to me at info@greenwalledtreehouse.com. You can also submit your story here for a chance to have it published on the site next week. I will post my story for this prompt next week as well.

Have a wonderful week. So hello to a small animal if you get the chance.